Skip to main content

Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

American, b. 1966
Ron English (b. 1959) is a pioneering American contemporary artist who explores the intersection of street art, brand imagery, superhero comics, art history, advertising, and politics. His cheeky interpretation of Pop Art comes alive in vibrant drawings, paintings, and murals. English’s imagery is found on the street, in museums, in movies, books, and television. His irreverent, imagined characters include MC Supersized, the obese fast-food mascot featured in Morgan Spurlock’s 2004 documentary Super Size Me, and Abraham Obama, a mischievous hybrid of the 16th and 44th U.S. presidents. Sociocultural commentary underscores his work, exemplified by his iteration of Ronald McDonald as a western culture “Buddha” gorging McDonald’s to expose the insatiable slothfulness of consumerism. English transformed his early experience as an art reproducer to become a founding co-creator of illegal public art campaigns in the early 1980s. His controversial street art activities are the subject matter and explored extensively in POPaganda - The Art Crimes of Ron English, a documentary directed by Pedro Carvajal. An acclaimed outlaw artist, English never became an official member, but he has participated with the Billboard Liberation Front, which practices culture jamming by altering billboards to change keywords and radically alter the message, often to make an anti-corporate statement. He frequently targets corporations and their mascots, including Joe Camel and Mickey Mouse. English seeks to inspire people to question consumer capitalism through his exaggerated, grotesque characters. English is a masterful oil painter working in a photorealist style. After earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of North Texas in Denton, and an MFA from The University of Texas, English moved to New York City, where he apprenticed with several artists and started selling his own work. English reworks art historical imagery, such as depictions of Picasso’s Guernica, as a template to explore universal issues. English’s work is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Paris, the Whitney Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Paterson Museum in Paterson, New Jersey. He has exhibited at the Station Museum in Houston and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Washington DC. In November of 2021, English’s enormous immersive installation Sugar Circus opened an exhibition at The Nest in Q Plex in Nanshan District in Shenzhen, China. His work has been featured in solo and group shows around the world.
to
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
12
8
7
2
2
Creator: Ron English
Painted Silkscreen of John Lennon Groucho Marx by Ron English
By Ron English
Located in Palm Springs, CA
A silkscreen on paper that has been painted over in acrylic or oil. It was done by Ron English as we have the same image signed done in different styles. This one is not signed or ma...
Category

Late 20th Century American Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Related Items
70 s Serigraph by Sister Corita Kent
By Sister Corita
Located in Phoenix, AZ
Sister Mary Corita Kent (1918-1986) was known for her text-based pop influenced printmaking that conveyed her activism and spiritually-informed social...
Category

1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Paint

70
s Serigraph by Sister Corita Kent
70
s Serigraph by Sister Corita Kent
$2,800
H 24 in W 24 in D 1.5 in
19th Century Napoleonic Prisoner of War Painted Casket Dominoes Set
Located in London, GB
19th Century Napoleonic Prisoner of War Painted Casket Dominoes Set A stunning example of an early 19th century Napoleonic prisoner of war hand painted casket dominos set. One of th...
Category

1820s French Folk Art Antique Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Natural Fiber

American Arts And Crafts Finely Painted Pyrography Dutch Scene By Harry Ungar
Located in South Burlington, VT
An unusually fine mid century Arts and crafts pyrography portrait of two Dutch children amidst a scene of a windmill , home, boat and water. Attractively hand stained or painted wit...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Wood

Carved and Painted Six Whale Species Board Made by Nantucket Whaler, circa 1940
By Captain George Grant
Located in Nantucket, MA
Made by George Grant of Nantucket (1857-1942). Grant, the son of whaling captain Charles Grant, was born in 1857 during a whaling voyage. His mother, ...
Category

Early 20th Century American Folk Art Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Pine, Paint

Fabric Collage Floor Screen by Rose Lautman
Located in Hanover, MA
Rose Lautman, worked exclusively in fabric collage with a meticulous hand and a fine needle. Rose's artwork was exhibited in galleries primarily in Sara...
Category

1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Fabric

Fabric Collage Floor Screen by Rose Lautman
Fabric Collage Floor Screen by Rose Lautman
$1,995
H 55 in W 22 in D 1.5 in
Old Paint Folk Art Spool Shelf
Located in Seattle, WA
Wonderful very functional spool shelf. Very well-made, great color.
Category

19th Century American Antique Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Metal

Old Paint Folk Art Spool Shelf
Old Paint Folk Art Spool Shelf
$2,800
H 69 in W 36 in D 12 in
Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Bold geometric abstract board found in Texas. We have a collection of these boards from an anonymous artist. Painted on recycled cupboard doors, table tops, stool tops and bread boar...
Category

1950s American Folk Art Vintage Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Wood

Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
$2,500
H 33 in W 29 in D 2 in
Miniature Marquetry Blanket Chest Dated 1910 by Flora Boyer of Pennsylvania
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This exquisite miniature marquetry blanket chest represents a significant example of early 20th century Pennsylvania folk art. Crafted in 1910 by...
Category

Early 20th Century American American Craftsman Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Wood

Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Bold geometric abstract board found in Texas. We have a collection of these boards from an anonymous artist. Painted on recycled cupboard doors, table tops, stool tops and bread boar...
Category

1950s American Folk Art Vintage Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Wood

Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
$2,500
H 43.5 in W 19 in D 1.5 in
Hand-Painted Screen Door Modernist Art Deco Contemporary Folk Art, C.Moore
By Charles Moore 1
Located in Buffalo, NY
Wonderful, hand-painted screen door, fantasy-like, Depicting Buffalo, New York Central Terminal, train station, complete with Deco terminal, building, ai...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Art Deco Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Metal

Farmer Made Wooden Hand Painted Swiss Wall Plate with Edelweiss and Flower Motif
Located in Rümmingen, BW
This wooden hand-painted Swiss wall plate, especially one likely made by a farmer, is a charming piece of folk art that reflects the rural traditions and everyday life of Switzerland...
Category

Mid-20th Century Swiss Primitive Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Wood

Pair of Black Smith Art Sculptures of a Bicyclist and a Hunter, circa 1900s
Located in New York, NY
Fabulous pair of hand-forged iron sculptures from a black smith, circa 1900s of man on a bicycle with a cigar and a hunter with his dog, bird and gun. T...
Category

Early 20th Century American Folk Art Ron English Outsider and Self Taught Art

Materials

Iron

Ron English outsider and self taught art for sale on 1stDibs.

Ron English outsider and self taught art are available for sale on 1stDibs. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Ron English outsider and self taught art, although beige editions of this piece are particularly popular. Prices for Ron English outsider and self taught art can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $9,500 and can go as high as $9,500, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $9,500.

Still Thinking About These?

All Recently Viewed